UAE to deposit $250 million into Sudan

ABU DHABI - The United Arab Emirates announced Sunday it would deposit $250 million in Sudan's central bank as part of a support package for the country following the overthrow of longtime leader Omar al-Bashir.

The government-owned Abu Dhabi Fund for Development signed an agreement with the Sudanese central bank "confirming the deposit", the UAE's official WAM news agency said.

Last week, Saudi Arabia and the UAE announced three billion dollars (2.7 billion euros) in financial aid for Sudan.

The oil-rich Gulf states pledged to inject $500 million into the Sudanese central bank and $2.5 billion to help provide food, medicine and petroleum products, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

The deposit for the central bank was aimed at shoring up the Sudanese pound, the SPA said.

In recent years Sudan has been hit by an acute lack of dollars, a key factor behind the nationwide protests that led to the toppling of Bashir by the army this month.

Sudan plays a key role in the regional interests of Saudi Arabia and its allies, siding with Riyadh against Shiite Iran and providing troops in the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen's war.

Both Gulf nations have voiced backing for Sudan's military rulers, who are facing calls from protesters to cede power to a civilian transitional government.

The Sudanese currency had plunged even after the United States lifted its 20-year-old trade embargo on the country in October 2017.

Expectations that the end of US sanctions would bring an economic recovery failed to materialise, putting pressure on the pound.

The country's economic crisis has deepened since the secession of South Sudan in 2011 that took away the bulk of oil earnings.